Issue 575 – September 18, 2018

CORRECTION

On August 2^nd (Issue 572), I responded to Tom DiGuido’s letter that said, in part, “I’ve discovered in an article that the camping nights from Cub Scouts are to be counted in the National Outdoor Camping segment. I can’t see why this would be accurate. Why would a Boy Scout award count Cub Scout activity in the qualification criteria? This seems to be out of line with the spirit of all other awards, badges, and rank requirements. Since this seems to be a one-off, why wouldn’t this be stated clearly in the listed requirements for the award (“Bryan On Scouting,” 3/13/2014: https://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/2014/03/13/interpreting-under-the-auspices-in-national-outdoor-awards-requirements/#comment-3751955613” If we’re to include Cub Scout camping for Boy Scouts, can you shed some light as to why? Thanks!”

My reply on August 2^nd, in refute of what I thought at that time was a blatant error, provided this link: https://www.scouting.org/programs/boy-scouts/youth/awards/noa/

Turns out, the BSA has indeed decided—for the first time in the 88 years we’ve had the Cub Scout program—to allow Cub Scout activity credit toward a Boy Scout (only) award.

As a boots-on-the-ground commissioner, and therefore my council’s representative for the BSA at large, of course I’m obliged to uphold and support this decision. It does, however, concern me. This seems to be a hole punched straight through the boundary between Cub Scouting and Boy Scouting. As for why a decision like this would be made, I’ll admit that I’m completely without a clue.

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Hi Andy,

We have some serious issues going on with the new Committee Chair at our son’s troop, and we’re about to get our chartered organization involved in a resolution here. One of our former Scoutmasters has given me some guidance on BSA policies, and suggested that I reach out to you. I’m hoping you can point us in the right direction.

Just the other night, my wife and I, and our 12 year-old son, were “summoned” to a private meeting with the new Committee Chair (I’ll use “CC” for short), the current Scoutmaster (SM), and a new Assistant Scoutmaster (ASM). Their agenda was to talk with us about our son’s alleged “lack of respect” toward the CC in particular at a troop camping trip about four days earlier. They informed my wife and me – in our son’s presence, which didn’t seem right to begin with – of several incidents in which he displayed “disrespect” and “lied.”

It was the ASM who accused our son of lying, which he did out loud, in front of the other Scouts; this proved false, as we were able to prove on the spot, but it didn’t take away the stigma of the public accusations the ASM had made. Next, the CC made several allegations about our son’s “behavior” toward her at some unspecified times in the past (i.e., before the campout) that required “discipline”—even though, just a couple of days ago, she’s told my wife that our son was “doing just fine” and, when we asked for more specificity on when these purported “behavior incidents” occurred, the CC “just couldn’t remember quite when they happened” (pretty convenient to this father!).

It gets worse. Although about two weeks earlier, our son successfully completed his board of review for Second Class rank (the CC chaired the review), the CC declared that she’s “revoking” (her exact word) this rank and “suspending” him from the troop for the remainder in 2018.

Now, in this meeting, while revoking his rank and suspending him, she did so by literally yelled at my son and slamming her fist on the table for silence when he attempted to speak to her in his own defense. (My wife and I immediately intervened when he began to cry, and told her to back off or we’re all leaving.)

Meanwhile, if the SM said twenty words during this entire melee, that would be an exaggeration. The CC was clearly running the show with an iron fist.

Here’s what our former Scoutmaster told us. Can you confirm any of this?

A rank is earned the minute a successful board of review is concluded. No one is authorized to revoke any rank, once achieved, for any reason.

The normal procedure when there are behavioral issues with a Scout is for the Scoutmaster to sit down individually with the Scout, at least as a first step.

Any meeting with parents, regarding behavioral issues typically don’t include their son, and it would again be typically held between the Scoutmaster and the parents.

If in the judgment of the troop’s adult volunteers, a Scout will be suspended (i.e., he can’t attend troop meetings, campouts, etc.), this can only be considered if the Scout has or is on the edge of harm to himself or others and the parents should be consulted first, so that they can do their part in rectifying their son’s behavioral issues.

It’s not the role of a committee member, including a CC, discipline Scouts.

Yelling at Scouts and threatening them via aggressive behavior is not acceptable behavior by Scouting volunteers.

No Scout should ever be “labeled” (i.e., “You’re a liar,” etc.) and certainly never in public.

Thanks for your help! (Glenn Massarotti)

Your son’s Scoutmaster is correct on all points, and this troop definitely has folks that are completely out of line (the CC tops the list). This isn’t my “opinion”—this is according to the policies and procedures of the BSA and is included in the TROOP LEADER GUIDEBOOK as well as in the BSA’s Youth Protection Training.

This current situation, however, is for the troop’s other leaders to solve—not you. Since the chartered organization has complete “hire-fire” power, and since no “three strikes” or anything else applies (we’re not talking about employees here), the head of the organization or the Chartered Organization Representative (if it’s not the CC) can act instantly. All it takes, with a witness present, is to meet individually and in-person with those who need to be removed and state, “Thank you for your past services. They will no longer be needed, effective immediately.” The removed person or persons have no recourse for reinstatement—if they appeal to the district or the council, they will be told that the chartered organization is responsible for this, and no one else.

DON’T try to fight this fight yourself! You’ll wind up subject to further rancor, accusations, frustration, and tons of emotional and physical energy wasted…and your son will be lost somewhere in the melee. This is for the Scoutmaster (and others who agree with him) to do directly with this troop’s chartered organization.

But there is definitely something you can do to help your son: Find a nearby troop where the adults get it right—and transfer your son there immediately. Don’t hesitate. Don’t ponder. Don’t worry about “hurting the feelings” of someone who has no trouble running roughshod over the youth they’re supposed to be supporting and serving.

Don’t engage with that abusive CC; get your son out of harm’s way!

Do I know what I’m talking about? Your bet I do! Here’s a true story from my own experiences as a Scout…

When I was 11 years old, I could hardly wait to join the Boy Scout troop at my family’s church. I’d studied my handbook and decided to get myself on the “advancement trail.” In going for Tenderfoot rank, I showed up at a troop meeting was fully prepared to do show my handbook said I needed to do. The Scoutmaster and Committee Chair told me that they will review me, to make sure I knew my stuff, so we proceeded. The other requirements taken care of, it came time to repeat the Scout Law and tell, in my own words, what each point meant to me. I started with Trustworthy and began to follow the “in my own words” part, as stated in the Tenderfoot requirements. The SM and CC stopped me.

“In this troop,” they told me, “we expect you to memorize exactly what your handbook says about each point of the Law.”

I was puzzled. “But my handbook says ‘to describe in your own words’ and that’s what I was doing,” I said.

“Well not in this troop,” they told me. “In this troop, we follow a higher standard. And you just failed.”

I left the troop meeting utterly disheartened, and spent the next couple of days in a blue funk. Then, I straightened myself up and made a plan…

I returned the following week and, without a miss, provided the exact definitions of each point of the Scout Law, just like they demanded.

“Good,” the Scoutmaster said. “Now you’ve passed. Here’s your Tenderfoot badge.”

“Thank you,” I said, and pinned it (we used pins back then) to my shirt. Then I respectfully said goodnight to them and…I walked out of that troop meeting.

By the following week, I’d found another troop and joined it.

Now I was no “special” kid; in fact, I was pretty shy. But I had a spine, and I decided I’m not going to stay with a troop that doesn’t follow what my handbook told me Scouts is supposed to be all about.

So, tell your son that you just got some advice from and 11 year-old, and help him find a better troop!

Happy Scouting!

Andy

Have a question? Facing a dilemma? Wondering where to find a BSA policy or guideline? Write to askandybsa@yahoo.com. Please include your name and council. (If you’d prefer to be anonymous, if published, let me know and that’s what we’ll do.)

[No. 575 – 9/18/2018 – Copyright © Andy McCommish 2018]